Free spinning cap assembly



4, 1953 F. SAMLER EI'AL I 2,647,704

FREE SPINNING CAP ASSEMBLY Filed June 2, 1950 um I I] I /5 23' Z3 IN V EN TOR.

04770NEY5 Patented Aug. 4, 1953 yese, Odenton, Md., assignorsto The Nat onal.

Plastic Products Company, Odntoii, Mil, a

corporation of Maryland Application June 2, 1950, serial No. 165,686

7 Claims.

This invention relates to material unwinding devices; and more particularly to a device for unwinding a continuous strand of material from spools; reels, or the like.

In the endwise unwinding of a continuous strand of material irom a flanged spool, the material balloons to an increasing extent as the unwinding point travels downward towards the base of the spool and decreases as the unwinding point travels upward toward the to or the spool, being at a minimum at the top, with the result that the pull on the material may cause it to bind momentarily upon the top flange of the bobbin and break. During such an operation, the material often becomes entangled or entrapped, whereby the continuous unimpeded withdrawal thereof is prevented. These diiiioulties occur as a result or numerous factors, such as the manner in which the material has been wound onto the spool, which may result in overwinds at the ends,

so that as the layers are Withdrawn the possibility 01f entanglement is created. Likewise, spools which have been tightly wound may bulge or mushroom at the ends to cause diflicult unwinding.

A spinning flyer' has been previously proposed, that has an eyelet through which the strand of material passes The objection to this device is that when the unwinding is stopped, the; mo-

mentum or the revolving flyer entangles the materials or results in a number or unwinded turns of the material.

It is anv object of the present invention to provide a device which permits overend delivery of a continuous strand of material with a uniform tension.

It is a further object or the present invention to'providc a rotating device for a stationary spool 01* bobbin which permits high speed overen'd uriwindin-g or a continuous strand of material from the spool or bobbin with the elimination o'fsnagging.

Other objects and the nature and advantages of the instant invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

i is a view partly in front elevation and partly in vertical: section, showing the device inserted into the end of abobbin, and

Fig. 21's a reduced plan view thereof.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the numeral I0 indicates a bobbin, spool or reel on which a continuous strand of material is wound. 1 The bobbin I0 is provided with upper and lower flanges or heads H and. with a barrel per plug 2i has a provided with a core I2 extending through the center thereof. The bobbin is preferably frlofifited in a stationary manner a suitable support at the bottom thereof, and the stran of ma teriai is unwound orereiia a out the free spun i rie evice indicated generauy br ne t. The device It includes a rotatable cap ioniber I4 is preferably inade of plastic and a downwardly eiit'n'ding ones It on the" outer periphery thereof adapted to covei the upper spool flange or head u as well a portion or he wound material on the; barrel. Ari upwardly ext n ing circular sense It is provided integral with the sap 14 or slig tly gfati di'ai'neter than the central opening it therein, thus forming a shoulder is surrounding the opening 1. A retaming ring [9 is attached to the cap H; within the upwardly extending fiange J6, resting the shoulder .18 therein. Preferably th' r'taining ring is is made or inst-a1 and is incised iii place. Extending through the o ening [1 of the ca into the core t2 of the obb n is a plug; asseiiii iy adapted to be connected rigidly to the bobbin it. The this assembly coin-prises a shaft it a tached at the top thereof to a plug 2 and the ottom to a plug 2'2. The lower plug 22 isoi smaller diameter than the core I? of the bobbin so that it can be inserted there n. upper mug it is of reater diameter than the; core ii or the bobbin and rests on the uopeir'iieau n thereof. The upsmaller diameter than the dentrai opening ii i i the cap so that it may be ins'ertcd therein. A plural ty of ieai springs 2e are a sociated at the endszt" with the piug asseiiiply between the plugs 2'1 and a; surrounding the shaft 20. The ieaf springs is" are b wed outwardly at'their center portions so as; to; tightly engage the walls or the" core 12' of the bobbin and provide rigid connection between the bobbin and the plug assembly. "I 'I'jhe oiite'if ci cumferential urface or the plug 2|" is formed with a 2: on which an iriner bearing race 25 is located. A; look ring; it secured inthe slot s in the pin-g 2i retain the bear race 2'5 in posit on. An outerbeariiigiace ii resting on a shoulder is on the inner eripheral of tlie' r'etain iig iiris is is new in position by all k fine is a in the slot s in the retaining ring r9; Bali beari gs at are positioned be'tii'veii the and outer raos'. p 4

in operation, the ping assembly denying the freely rotatable cap member M is rigidly inserted in one end of the bobbin as shown in Fig. 1. When the unwinding operation is initiated, the

strand of material takes the form of a balloon and the unwinding proceeds until the draw-off of the strand is impeded for some reason. The resulting tension on the strand causes the strand to contact the depending flange IS on the rotatable cap member [4. Upon contact with the cap member, the latter is rotated in the direction in which the strand is unwound by reason of the tension on the strand. This rotation of the cap member will decrease the angle of the strand with respect to the axis of the bobbin and will thereby give extra impetus to the strand between the point where it is trapped and the point at which it touches the rotatable member. This will act to free the entrapped strand and facilitate the continued unwinding thereof uninterruptedly. As soon as the strand is freed, it will again balloon outwardly out of contact with the rotatable cap member.

In the operation of this device, the only time the strand material comes in contact with the rotatable cap member is when the speed of unwinding is low on a full bobbin so that there is little ballooning or at higher speeds when the bobbin becomes partially empty and the drag increases, especially when thestrand is closest to the upper head of the bobbin. The device has proven of special value in the case where the delivery of the material is stopped and the strand winds happen to be in the topmost part of the bobbin. In this case, many times, when starting at high speeds, the strand snaps due to the drag on the head of the bobbin. Using the present invention, however, this unsatisfactory condition has been essentially eliminated and more uniform winding tensions and higher speeds are made possible.

This device is particularly adapted for use with thread and yarn and has been found highly efiicient in filling bobbins as well as in high speed warp beaming operations. However, the device can likewise be used in unwinding other types of strand material such as wire, cable, twine and the like.

This device may be used with a spool or bobbin not only for unwinding, but also for over-end winding to form the original package. In the use of the device in this manner, the operation would be just the reverse of that described above.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and therefore the invention is not limited to what is shown in the drawings and described in the specification but only as indicated in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In a device for the endwise winding and unwinding of a hollow package of a continuous strand of wound material, a plug assembly engaging the inner wall of the hollow package rigidly, said plug assembly comprising means fitting into the lower hollow portion of the package, a second means fitting into the upper hollow portion of the package, and resilient means mounted between the first and second means engaging the inner wall of the hollow package, a cap member rotatably attached to said plug assembly, said cap member including a depending flange at the outer'periphery of said cap member covering the upper end of the wound portion of the said package, and bearing structure mounted between the said cap member and the said plug assembly to permit rotation of the cap member with respect to the plug assembly and the package.

2. A device in accordance with claim 1 wherein the cap member is integral with a metal retaining ring. Y

3. In a device for the endwise winding and unwinding of a continuous strand of material from a flanged spool, a cap member, a plug assembly engaging the inner wall of the hollow package rigidly, said cap member being rotatably attached to said plug assembly, said plug assembly including a shaft, a lower plug fitting into the core of the spool attached to the lower end of said shaft, an upper plug engaging the upper flange of the spool attached to the upper end of said shaft, a plurality of leaf springs mounted between the two said plugs and bowed outwardly at their center portions so as to tightly engage the inner wall of the core of the spool, and hearing structure mounted between. the said cap member and the said plug assembly to permit the rotation of the cap member with respect to the plug assembly and the spool.

4. In a device for the endwise winding and unwinding of thread from a flanged spool, a plug assembly including a shaft, a lower plug fitting into the core of the spool attached to the lower end of said shaft, an upper plug engaging the upper head of the spool attached to the upper end of said shaft, a plurality of leaf springs mounted between the two said plugs and bowed outwardly at their center portions so as to tightly engage the inner wall of the core of the spool, an inner race attached to the outer surface of said upper plug, a rotatable cap member of greater diameter than the spool surrounding said upper plug, a depending flange at the outer periphery of said cap member covering the upper flange or" the spool and a portion of the wound portion ofthe barrel of the spool, an outer race attached to the cap member located opposite the inner race, and ball bearings mounted between the inner and outer race to permit rotation of the cap member with respect to the spool.

5. A device in accordance with claim 4 wherein the cap member includes an upwardly extending circular flange near the center thereof, a metal retaining ring attached to the inner surface of the said flange adapted to receive the said outer race.

6. A device in accordance with claim 5 wherein the cap member is integral with the metal retaining ring.

'7. A device in accordance with claim 3 wherein the cap member is made of a smooth plastic inaterial and includes an upwardly extending circular flange near the center thereof, a metal retaining ring attached to the inner surface of the circular flange, said cap member being integral with the said retaining ring.

LEE F. SAMLER; ANTHONY LEO GENOVESE.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Markwood June 5, 1945 

